THANATHIP & PARTNERS
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Trade Competition Act B.E. 2560 (2017)
October 2017
The newly enacted Trade Competition Act (B.E. 2560) (2017) (the “TCA”) was published in the royal gazette on 7 July 2017 and came into effect on 5 October 2017. Amongst other notable changes, the TCA extends the authority of the Office of Trade Competition Commission (the “OTCC”) as an independent authority to regulate and promote competition and fair trade and introduces new merger control regime as follows:
Law amendments for ease of doing business
April 2017
Focused on creating supportive environment for doing business in Thailand, the Head of the National Council for Peace and Order issued Order No. 21/2017 on 4 April 2017 with immediate effect to amend five key legislations, namely the Civil and Commercial Code, the Labour Protection Act, the Public Limited Companies Act, the Social Security Act and the Bankruptcy Act.
Criminal Liability of Representatives of Juristic Persons
February 2017
On 11 February 2017, the Criminal Liability of Representatives of Juristic Persons Amendment Act (B.E. 2560) (the "Act") came into effect and repeals a legal presumption of criminal liability on a director, a manager, or other persons responsible for the operation of juristic person embedded in 76 legislations, including, amongst others, the Financial Institution Business Act, the Life and Non-Life Insurance Acts, the Revenue Code, the Consumer Protection Act, the Act Prescribing Offences Related to Registered Partnerships, Limited Partnerships, Limited Companies, Associations And Foundations, the Anti-Money Laundering Act and etc.
Amendments to the Securities and Exchange Act
December 2016
The amendments to the Securities and Exchange Act B.E. 2535 as amended) which came into effect on 12 December 2016 are aimed at regulating increasingly complex market misconducts as well as improving the efficiency of legal enforcement. Key amendments include: 1. The scope of unfair trading practices has been expanded across four main categories of offences, namely (i) disclosure of false or misleading information; (ii) insider dealing; (iii) market manipulation; and (iv) others, e.g. sending of orders which create disruption or delay to trading system or use of nominee accounts to commit market misconduct.
Minimum Par Value - New Listing Criteria
October 2016
With effect form 1 October 2016, companies listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand ("SET") and Market for Alternative Investment ("MAI") are required to have par value of not less than Baht 0.5 per share, except in certain permitted circumstances (e.g. having closing price for each trading day of Baht 100 or more for a consecutive period of 6 months or undergoing rehabilitation or restructuring process).
Secured Transaction Act
July 2016
After a long wait, the Secured Transaction Act B.E. 2558 (2015) has finally come into full force on 2 July 2016. The Act introduces a new form of security interest over assets to the Thai legal system, which previously recognised only (i) mortgage (available for immovable property and certain specific types of movable property); and (ii) pledge (available for movable property and requires the delivery of the pledged property).